Nagpur: A journalist was caught red-handed by Sadar police for allegedly demanding extortion from an agent of the Regional Transport Office (RTO). The accused, identified as Sunil Hazari (44), serves as the Chief Editor of a prominent newspaper.
According to Deputy Commissioner of Police Rahul Madane, Hazari had demanded ₹10 lakh in exchange for not publishing news reports against ongoing activities in the RTO. The extortion demand was made to Dhanraj alias Titu Sadhu Ram Sharma (55), an RTO agent and resident of Baba Deep Singh Nagar, Nagpur.
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Thursday 21 Nov. 2024
On August 28, 2024, the complainant Sharma handed over ₹1 lakh to Hazare as part of the extortion payment. Before the second installment could be delivered, Sharma lodged a complaint against Hazari. Acting on this, Sadar police set a trap and arrested Hazare while he was accepting ₹80,000 in cash.
A case has been registered against Hazari, and the police are investigating whether others are involved in the crime.
